January 25th, 2024
It's a big day for nature and a big day for me, as today I launch Ireland’s new National Biodiversity Action Plan. The plan - Ireland’s fourth NBAP - contains 194 actions to protect and restore nature across Ireland and is the first biodiversity plan to be underpinned by legislation and backed by the €3.15 billion Climate and Nature Fund announced last year.
In my many years as a councillor in Kilkenny I worked alongside communities, individuals, schools and other organisations who were getting behind the effort to protect and restore nature. And in my three and a half years as Minister, travelling the length and breadth of this country, I’ve seen first-hand that passion for nature reflected in communities right across Ireland.
With the right support, accountability, and resourcing, I believe we can harness that people power and turn the tide on nature loss. The challenge is enormous, but the imperative to act couldn’t be more urgent. That’s why I was determined that this National Biodiversity Action Plan would be an impact plan, and last year, through the Wildlife Amendment Act, I put the NBAP on a Statutory footing. I also put a legal obligation on all public bodies to integrate biodiversity into their plans and policies.
Combined with the unprecedented €3.15 billion Climate and Nature Fund, that makes this the first NBAP with real power behind it and implementing it over the next seven years will truly be a national effort that touches every corner of the country, every sector and every community. Across 194 actions we will set out to protect and restore biodiversity, working hand-in-hand with communities, collaborating on nature-friendly farming, expanding and enhancing our national parks, targeting invasive species, and fighting wildlife crime. We’re even going to explore ways to formally recognise the rights of nature, as recommended by the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss.
I’ve seen the people power and now I’ve delivered the plan, I’m calling on everyone to get behind it. Let’s make Ireland wilder!